Our mantra is 'sabka saath, sabka vikaas', says Modi in Srinagar
Our mantra is 'sabka saath, sabka vikaas', says Modi in Srinagar
Srinagar
: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday announced a special package of Rs 80,000 crore for all-round development of Jammu and Kashmir and pledged to transform it into a new, modern, progressive and prosperous state for which there will no dearth of money.
“I want to tell the youth that this Rs 80,000 crore package should be used to change your destiny, should empower you and build a new Kashmir, a modern Kashmir. With this dream I have come to you and let me tell you this is not the end, it is just a beginning,” said Narendra Modi.
“Kashmir has suffered a lot over the years. Two generations have seen their dreams being crushed. I have come here with a conviction to take Kashmir to its previous glory and I can see that day is not too far,” PM said.
“This is not end of it. This is the beginning. Delhi will open its coffers for the people of Jammu and Kashmir and to rebuild the state,” he added, evoking tremendous applause from the audience.
Modi expressed his dream of restoring the beauty and tranquillity of Jammu and Kashmir and reviving it as a tourist destination, saying that he could not rest in peace until his mantra of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' touched the state as well.
-"If any corner of India is not united and remains bereft of development, then my dream of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' remains incomplete. I want to bring back those days when every Indian could not wait to visit Kashmir. There was a time when every family would save money for a vacation here. I want that atmosphere back in Jammu and Kashmir, -" the Prime Minister said.
Modi said that it was his endless love for Kashmir that brought him over here during September 2014 floods. “It would have been easy for me to celebrate Diwali with my friends in Delhi, but I decided to come here and be with the people,” he said adding “When the Chinese President visited India, he had plans to celebrate my birthday but I said when my friends in Kashmir are struck by floods, I can't celebrate.”
He also said that on his birthday every year he would visit his mother to seek blessings and she used to give him Rs 5 or Rs 11 as a token gift “but last year she gave me Rs 5,000 and said, “Son, take this money for the flood-affected people of Kashmir.” The Prime Minister said that it was this upbringing that inspires him and gives him the strength to care for the people.
Recalling the words of the former Prime Minister-- -"Kashmiriyat, Jamhooriyat aur Insaniyat' (social consciousness and cultural values of the Kashmiri people, democracy, and humanity), he said, -"I will like to follow these three mantras which are the pillars of development of Kashmir-".
-"I don't need advice or analysis from anyone in this world on Kashmir. The three mantras of Atal jee and these will be helpful in moving forward. Kashmiriyat ke bina Hindustan adhura hai. (Without Kashmiriyat, India is incomplete). Sufi tradition has emerged from this land and this tradition has taught us oneness and strength of unity,-" he said.
In his second public rally in Kashmir after becoming the Prime Minister, Modi announced the package and said that this is not a full stop as -"our hearts are also open for you-".
The Prime Minister said that the youth of the state needed employment and assured the Mufti Sayeed-led PDP-BJP alliance that the Centre was standing rock solid behind it in its endeavour to restore normalcy in the state.
-"We may touch any heights in economy and technology. And no matter how much the life changes, we may even build a castle in the air, but it is only our soul that inspires us to respect the dignity of self and others,-" he said.
Modi said there was no reason that Kashmiri cannot emerge from its troubled past as -"I believe that crisis, however deep it might be, can be over come with determination-".
-"Kashmir has seen a lot of crisis over the past 20 years. Dreams of two generations have been shattered. I have set out to make Kashmir paradise on earth again, to make it prosperous. I have belief in Mufti Sahib.... I have belief in you. Otherwise, we would not see such an atmosphere (at the rally),-" he added.
Turning his focus on infrastructure development, the Prime Minister said his government wants to develop the sector.
-"Today it takes nine to 11 hours to travel from Jammu to Srinagar, which can put off the tourists. We are spending Rs 34,000 crore on Jammu-Srinagar road which will reduce the travel time significantly as the distance will be less by 70 kilometres due to construction of tunnels,-" he said. He said this project will be completed within two and half years.
On the human resources, he said the youth of state have excelled in the competitive exams like IAS, IPS, IIT and IIM over the past few years which is indicative of the strength of the state.
-"I have recognised this talent of Kashmir and when I recognise the talent, I do everything that is needed to be done,-" he said.
The Prime Minister also pitched for resumption of international cricket in Kashmir saying if a player like Parvez Rasool is making progress, then international matches should also return.
-"It has been 30 years since an international match was played here,-" he said referring the Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket stadium, where the last one day international was played between India and Australia in 1986.
This is Prime Minister’s first visit to the state after PDP-BJP coalition came to power in March this year.
Mobile internet services in Kashmir Valley were blocked this morning as a precautionary measure. -"Mobile internet services have been temporarily discontinued in the Valley in the wake of the PM's visit,-" officials said. They said it was a precautionary measure in view of the high profile visit.
The officials said all service providers had been directed to disconnect the mobile internet services from 10 AM till the Prime Minister leaves the Valley. However, broadband services on BSNL were working.
Lawmaker Engineer Rashid was detained this morning for holding a black balloon protest near the venue. Last month, Rashid was thrashed by a group of BJP leaders in the state assembly for hosting a beef party. Days later he was also attacked with ink in Delhi.
The heightened security arrangements have been put in place as separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani has called for a parallel rally to that of the Prime Minister at Tourist Reception Centre ground - stone's throw from the stadium.
While the top separatist leaders including Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq have been placed under house arrest, over 200 others have been taken into preventive detention.
After addressing the public rally here, Modi inaugurated 450 megawatt Baglihar Phase II power project in Ramban district on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway.
He is also scheduled to lay the foundation stone of four- laning of Udhampur-Ramban stretch of the National Highway. The project, once completed, will reduce the travelling time between Srinagar and Jammu - the twin capitals of the state -- by nearly two hours.
